Riding-dress



M, E. GOLEGROVE.

RIDING DRESS.

No. 598,980. I Patented Feb. 15, 1898.

UNITED STATES PATENT ,OFFICE.

MARY E. COLEGROVE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

RIDING-DRESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 598,980 dated February15, 1898.

Application filed April 19, 1897. SerialNo. 632,772. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MARY E. OoLEGRovE, a citizen of the United States,residing at Ohicago, in the countyof Cook and State of Illinois, haveinvented a new and useful combination of divided skirts and overskirt orcoat for a riding-dress or riding-habit for horses or bicycles, of whichthe followingis a speciwith the bifurcated skirt and arranged as ariding-habit. Fig. 3 shows the garment entirely closed in front andarranged as a street or house dress.

A represents a double or divided skirt, which may be of the ordinarypattern and is provided in the front along the adjacent edges with tworows of buttons at a, running parallel from the bottom up,to theterminus of the dividing-line B.

The overdress O is of the ordinary pattern,

except that the skirt part thereof is open' both' in front and back fromthe bottom upward to a point stopping short of the waist-line or belt.The divided edges of the dress-skirt in front are provided with rows ofbuttonholes b b, corresponding to the position of and in line with thetwo rows of buttons on the bifurcated underskirt.

When the garment is to be used for a riding-habit, the adjacent openfront edges of the overskirt are made to engage with the rows of buttonson' the divided underskirt, as shown in Fig. 2. The overdress being openboth front and back, corresponding to the divided underskirt, is free toadjust itself nicely on each side of the saddle when the wearer ismounted. When the wearer dismounts, the buttoned edge 61 of theoverdress is disengaged from the buttons a on the underskirt and made toengage with the buttons a on the opposite side d, thus closing up thefront of the overdress and converting the garment into a walking orhouse dress, the row of buttons coming in line with the buttons g on thewaist part of the overdress, as shown in Fig. 3.

The rear open edges of the overskirt'may be provided with buttons orother suitable fastening devices; but this is not usually necessary, forthe reason that the overdress-skirt can be made so full as to closetogether when the wearer is standing or walking.

As it is now generally the fashion for ladies to sit astride in riding,the advantage of this form of a combinationgarment can be readilyunderstood and appreciated.

Another important advantage to be considered is that equestrian partiesoften stop at club-houses and wayside hotels to visit and dine. It willbe seen how readily and conveniently the ladies of the party can changethe riding-habit into a dress suitable for such functions.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Pat- .ent, is-

A combination riding-habit and walkingdress, consisting of a bifurcatedunder-skirt,

provided along each of the open front edges with a row of buttons, andan overdress, open front and back from the bottom up to a point belowthe waist-line and provided on each side of the open front withbuttonholes corresponding in position to and engaging with the buttonson thenhderskirt when used as a riding-habit, and adaptedto be changedinto a walking-dress by unfastening one side or edge and attaching it tothe row of buttons on the opposite side, whereby the divided underskirtis entirely concealed, substantially as described.

MARY E. OOLEGROVE.

Witnesses:

J. L. BENNETT, CHARLES H. BRIOT.

